29 sept 2018
Palestine has filed an official complaint with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against the United States’ relocation of its embassy from Tel Aviv to Occupied Jerusalem, saying the US move must be reversed as it violates the international law.
In a statement issued on Friday, the ICJ said Palestine contends the embassy's relocation is in breach of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
In its application, Palestine argued the treaty dictates embassies must be established on the territory of the receiving state and that the "special status of Jerusalem" means that the US violated its international obligations when it moved its embassy.
According to the statement, Palestine asked the court to declare the move illegal and order the US to withdraw the embassy from Jerusalem.
In this regard, Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Malki said the complaint "comes in line with the policy of the State of Palestine, which aims to preserve the character of the holy city of Jerusalem with its unique spiritual, religious and cultural dimensions.”
"We defend our rights and our people without hesitation and reject all forms of political and financial extortion," he was quoted as saying by Palestinian news agency WAFA.
Palestine Files Lawsuit against United States with the International Court of Justice
The Palestinian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Riyad al-Malki, said on Saturday that Palestine has filed a lawsuit against the United States at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the main judicial body of the United Nations, for violating the international law by moving its embassy in Israel to occupied Jerusalem City.
Malki said, in a statement, that the case was based on Palestine’s membership in the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries, specifically the Optional Protocol concerning the Compulsory Settlement of Disputes.
According to the statement, the foreign ministry submitted a declaration recognizing the jurisdiction of the ICJ to settle all disputes that have been faced of may be faced as per the decision of the United Nations Security Council and the procedures and statute of the Court.
Malki said that he had sent a letter to the US State Department, last May, asking it not to move its embassy to Jerusalem because this step would violate the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and Security Council resolutions.
He pointed out that, due to the failure of the US to respond to the letter and its non-compliance with international law, it was informed in a written memorandum, dated July 4, of the existence of a legal dispute as per the rules and procedures of the ICJ.
According to Malki, with the passage of the legal period and after meeting all conditions to file a lawsuit against the US, the lawsuit has been formally filed with the ICJ’s Registrar to prosecute the United States.
The minister said, according to Ma;an News Agency, that the ICJ was asked, in the lawsuit against the US, to declare that moving the embassy to occupied Jerusalem constituted a violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and to order the United States to take its diplomatic mission out of Jerusalem and comply with its international obligations in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, as well as taking the necessary measures to comply with its obligations and refrain from taking any future steps that may violate its obligations and provide the necessary guarantees for non-repetition of its unlawful action.
Malki stressed that taking this step is an exercise of the sovereign right of the State of Palestine as a member state of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and other related conventions, which is another legal right used by Palestine to defend its rights and interests against illegal actions and measures.
He said, expressing his belief that it is now possible to use the legal tracks that have been denied to the Palestinian people for decades, “We defend our rights and our people without hesitation and reject all forms of political and financial extortion.”
He pointed out that the State of Palestine has taken many important steps to address the recent illegal measures taken by the current US Administration, particularly with regard to Jerusalem, and the Israeli Government with respect to colonial settlements and targeting of civilians, as well as steps at the Security Council, the UN General Assembly, the Human Rights Council and now the International Criminal Court.
He added that “This step comes in line with the policy of the State of Palestine, which aims to preserve the character of the holy city of Jerusalem with its unique spiritual, religious and cultural dimensions.”
“The international community and international law have consistently rejected all attempts by Israel, the Occupying Power, to change the character and status of Jerusalem since all resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council have consistently affirmed that any action or decision aimed at changing the status or demographic character of Jerusalem is null and void and has no legal value.”
In a statement issued on Friday, the ICJ said Palestine contends the embassy's relocation is in breach of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
In its application, Palestine argued the treaty dictates embassies must be established on the territory of the receiving state and that the "special status of Jerusalem" means that the US violated its international obligations when it moved its embassy.
According to the statement, Palestine asked the court to declare the move illegal and order the US to withdraw the embassy from Jerusalem.
In this regard, Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Malki said the complaint "comes in line with the policy of the State of Palestine, which aims to preserve the character of the holy city of Jerusalem with its unique spiritual, religious and cultural dimensions.”
"We defend our rights and our people without hesitation and reject all forms of political and financial extortion," he was quoted as saying by Palestinian news agency WAFA.
Palestine Files Lawsuit against United States with the International Court of Justice
The Palestinian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Riyad al-Malki, said on Saturday that Palestine has filed a lawsuit against the United States at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the main judicial body of the United Nations, for violating the international law by moving its embassy in Israel to occupied Jerusalem City.
Malki said, in a statement, that the case was based on Palestine’s membership in the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries, specifically the Optional Protocol concerning the Compulsory Settlement of Disputes.
According to the statement, the foreign ministry submitted a declaration recognizing the jurisdiction of the ICJ to settle all disputes that have been faced of may be faced as per the decision of the United Nations Security Council and the procedures and statute of the Court.
Malki said that he had sent a letter to the US State Department, last May, asking it not to move its embassy to Jerusalem because this step would violate the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and Security Council resolutions.
He pointed out that, due to the failure of the US to respond to the letter and its non-compliance with international law, it was informed in a written memorandum, dated July 4, of the existence of a legal dispute as per the rules and procedures of the ICJ.
According to Malki, with the passage of the legal period and after meeting all conditions to file a lawsuit against the US, the lawsuit has been formally filed with the ICJ’s Registrar to prosecute the United States.
The minister said, according to Ma;an News Agency, that the ICJ was asked, in the lawsuit against the US, to declare that moving the embassy to occupied Jerusalem constituted a violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and to order the United States to take its diplomatic mission out of Jerusalem and comply with its international obligations in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, as well as taking the necessary measures to comply with its obligations and refrain from taking any future steps that may violate its obligations and provide the necessary guarantees for non-repetition of its unlawful action.
Malki stressed that taking this step is an exercise of the sovereign right of the State of Palestine as a member state of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and other related conventions, which is another legal right used by Palestine to defend its rights and interests against illegal actions and measures.
He said, expressing his belief that it is now possible to use the legal tracks that have been denied to the Palestinian people for decades, “We defend our rights and our people without hesitation and reject all forms of political and financial extortion.”
He pointed out that the State of Palestine has taken many important steps to address the recent illegal measures taken by the current US Administration, particularly with regard to Jerusalem, and the Israeli Government with respect to colonial settlements and targeting of civilians, as well as steps at the Security Council, the UN General Assembly, the Human Rights Council and now the International Criminal Court.
He added that “This step comes in line with the policy of the State of Palestine, which aims to preserve the character of the holy city of Jerusalem with its unique spiritual, religious and cultural dimensions.”
“The international community and international law have consistently rejected all attempts by Israel, the Occupying Power, to change the character and status of Jerusalem since all resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council have consistently affirmed that any action or decision aimed at changing the status or demographic character of Jerusalem is null and void and has no legal value.”
27 sept 2018
Day after US president's declaration that he 'likes a two state solution', defense minister says 'Palestinian state does not interest me,’ insists ‘Arab citizens demonstrating with Palestinian flags is the main problem.'
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Wednesday that he is not interested in a Palestinian state, a day after US President Donald Trump said for the first time since entering the White House that he supports the concept of a two-state solution.
"A Palestinian state does not interest me. I am interested in a secure Jewish state," Lieberman said during a tour of the Quneitra border crossing in the Golan Heights.
"We are facing acute problems here, not just slogans. The fact that 20 percent of the Arab population in Israel participate time after time in riots and demonstrations carrying Palestinian flags— this is the main problem. We have to take care of the Jewish state. The rest is less interesting," the minister stated.
Speaking in a joint press conference on Wednesday in New York with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly meeting, Trump said "I like a two state solution. That's what I think works best ... That's my feeling."
On a visit to the Israeli-held side of the Quneitra crossing—attended by the head of Home Front Command, Maj. Gen. Yoel Strik— Lieberman announced that Israel is ready to reopen the crossing point into the Syrian-controlled Golan Heights now that Syrian government forces have regained control from rebels.
"We are ready to open the Quneitra crossing as we did in the past. The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) has returned to the crossing and they are prepared as well. The ball is now in the Syrian court," Lieberman said.
Military police from Russia, a major ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, have been patrolling on the Syrian side of Quneitra, where Lieberman said Syrian police and customs officials were also present.
With Israel committed to its non-intervention policy in Syria, Lieberman said the reopening merely means that security considerations now allow the crossing to operate.
The crossing is primarily used by UN personnel stationed there and for the occasional transfer of agricultural products.
In the past, Lieberman elaborated, traffic through Quneitra mainly comprised shipments into Syria of apples grown by Druze farmers on the Golan, and the entry of brides for partners on both sides of the armistice line.
The Syrian side of the Quneitra crossing was captured four years ago by the rebels in Syria, forcing UN personnel to flee the area.
After the crossing was captured, it changed hands many times over the years, until the Assad regime finally took control of it.
The minister received a security briefing on IDF's preparations for the opening of the crossing, and met with members of the IDF Liaison Unit which maintains continuous contact with UNDOF.
"We said from the outset that we have no interest in meddling in the civil war inside Syria, what interests us is us to ensuring the safety of the citizens of Israel," Lieberman said.
"The fact that we have come here, to Alpha Gate—and as far as we are concerned UNDOF forces have also begun to operate and patrol the area with IDF's assistance—means that we are ready to open the crossing," he added.
"In terms of the ability to operate the crossing, both from a security and administrative point of view, everything is ready and closed. We will ensure compliance with each and every section of the same separation agreement from 1974. We check ourselves every day, we are in daily contact with the soldiers of the UNDOF who are here on our right," Lieberman told reporters.
When asked whether resuming routine in the crossing is, in fact, a recognition of Assad's regime, who committed war crimes in Syria, the minister replied:
"We have never changed our position, we said that we are not interfering, that is the Syrians' business. Assad is not our friend.
"As far as I am concerned, he is a war criminal and all those international bodies that are so concerned about human rights—I do not see them operating in the Syrian side, nor ask the regime for clarifications. We are concerned only about the security of Israeli citizens," Lieberman asserted.
Referring to relations with Russia after Assad's forces accidentally shot down the Russian intelligence plane while trying to repel an IAF attack, the minister reiterated his regret for the deaths of 15 Russian aircrew members.
Despite the diplomatic spar that ensued with Russian, the minister noted that the security coordination has continued.
"The security coordination between the Russian army and the IDF is very important. We have no interest in conducting dialogue with Russia through the media … As far as we are concerned, responsibility for the downing of the Russian plane lies with the Syrian army. All the rest will be discussed with the Russians behind closed doors," Lieberman added.
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Wednesday that he is not interested in a Palestinian state, a day after US President Donald Trump said for the first time since entering the White House that he supports the concept of a two-state solution.
"A Palestinian state does not interest me. I am interested in a secure Jewish state," Lieberman said during a tour of the Quneitra border crossing in the Golan Heights.
"We are facing acute problems here, not just slogans. The fact that 20 percent of the Arab population in Israel participate time after time in riots and demonstrations carrying Palestinian flags— this is the main problem. We have to take care of the Jewish state. The rest is less interesting," the minister stated.
Speaking in a joint press conference on Wednesday in New York with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly meeting, Trump said "I like a two state solution. That's what I think works best ... That's my feeling."
On a visit to the Israeli-held side of the Quneitra crossing—attended by the head of Home Front Command, Maj. Gen. Yoel Strik— Lieberman announced that Israel is ready to reopen the crossing point into the Syrian-controlled Golan Heights now that Syrian government forces have regained control from rebels.
"We are ready to open the Quneitra crossing as we did in the past. The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) has returned to the crossing and they are prepared as well. The ball is now in the Syrian court," Lieberman said.
Military police from Russia, a major ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, have been patrolling on the Syrian side of Quneitra, where Lieberman said Syrian police and customs officials were also present.
With Israel committed to its non-intervention policy in Syria, Lieberman said the reopening merely means that security considerations now allow the crossing to operate.
The crossing is primarily used by UN personnel stationed there and for the occasional transfer of agricultural products.
In the past, Lieberman elaborated, traffic through Quneitra mainly comprised shipments into Syria of apples grown by Druze farmers on the Golan, and the entry of brides for partners on both sides of the armistice line.
The Syrian side of the Quneitra crossing was captured four years ago by the rebels in Syria, forcing UN personnel to flee the area.
After the crossing was captured, it changed hands many times over the years, until the Assad regime finally took control of it.
The minister received a security briefing on IDF's preparations for the opening of the crossing, and met with members of the IDF Liaison Unit which maintains continuous contact with UNDOF.
"We said from the outset that we have no interest in meddling in the civil war inside Syria, what interests us is us to ensuring the safety of the citizens of Israel," Lieberman said.
"The fact that we have come here, to Alpha Gate—and as far as we are concerned UNDOF forces have also begun to operate and patrol the area with IDF's assistance—means that we are ready to open the crossing," he added.
"In terms of the ability to operate the crossing, both from a security and administrative point of view, everything is ready and closed. We will ensure compliance with each and every section of the same separation agreement from 1974. We check ourselves every day, we are in daily contact with the soldiers of the UNDOF who are here on our right," Lieberman told reporters.
When asked whether resuming routine in the crossing is, in fact, a recognition of Assad's regime, who committed war crimes in Syria, the minister replied:
"We have never changed our position, we said that we are not interfering, that is the Syrians' business. Assad is not our friend.
"As far as I am concerned, he is a war criminal and all those international bodies that are so concerned about human rights—I do not see them operating in the Syrian side, nor ask the regime for clarifications. We are concerned only about the security of Israeli citizens," Lieberman asserted.
Referring to relations with Russia after Assad's forces accidentally shot down the Russian intelligence plane while trying to repel an IAF attack, the minister reiterated his regret for the deaths of 15 Russian aircrew members.
Despite the diplomatic spar that ensued with Russian, the minister noted that the security coordination has continued.
"The security coordination between the Russian army and the IDF is very important. We have no interest in conducting dialogue with Russia through the media … As far as we are concerned, responsibility for the downing of the Russian plane lies with the Syrian army. All the rest will be discussed with the Russians behind closed doors," Lieberman added.
Netanyahu Response to Trump’s Advocacy of Two-State Solution: “Palestinians will Never Have a State”
In the midst of a UN speech praising the Israeli government and their heavy-handed tactics against the Palestinian civilian population of the territory the Israeli military has been occupying since 1967, Donald Trump voiced support for the ‘two-state solution’ to the conflict.
In response, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu stated that, “Palestinians will never have a state” as long as he is in power.
After Trump and Netanyahu met on the sidelines of the United Nations Wednesday, he told reporters that even though Trump said that he favored a two-state solution for the Israelis and Palestinians, “Everyone defines the term ‘state’ differently.”
However, since 1933, the Montevideo Convention has been the internationally-accepted definition for a state under international law.
Adopted by the Seventh International Conference of American States, the convention stipulated that all states were equal sovereign units consisting of a permanent population, defined territorial boundaries, a government, and an ability to enter into agreements with other states.
Israel, although recognized as a state in 1948, has never defined its borders, and has, through the decades, encroached further and further onto Palestinian land, so that it now controls more than 80% of the land area of what was, until 1948, the land of Palestine.
Trump reportedly said to the reporters, “In one way it’s more difficult, because it’s a real estate deal. But in another way it works better because you have people governing themselves.”
But Netanyahu criticized Trump’s statement, saying that Israel must permanently maintain its military occupation and control over the Palestinian civil population, with no Palestinian state that is both sovereign and self-deterined.
In response, the Palestinian Authority spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah, said: “The two-state solution means to us that we have a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is the only way to achieve peace.”
In response, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu stated that, “Palestinians will never have a state” as long as he is in power.
After Trump and Netanyahu met on the sidelines of the United Nations Wednesday, he told reporters that even though Trump said that he favored a two-state solution for the Israelis and Palestinians, “Everyone defines the term ‘state’ differently.”
However, since 1933, the Montevideo Convention has been the internationally-accepted definition for a state under international law.
Adopted by the Seventh International Conference of American States, the convention stipulated that all states were equal sovereign units consisting of a permanent population, defined territorial boundaries, a government, and an ability to enter into agreements with other states.
Israel, although recognized as a state in 1948, has never defined its borders, and has, through the decades, encroached further and further onto Palestinian land, so that it now controls more than 80% of the land area of what was, until 1948, the land of Palestine.
Trump reportedly said to the reporters, “In one way it’s more difficult, because it’s a real estate deal. But in another way it works better because you have people governing themselves.”
But Netanyahu criticized Trump’s statement, saying that Israel must permanently maintain its military occupation and control over the Palestinian civil population, with no Palestinian state that is both sovereign and self-deterined.
In response, the Palestinian Authority spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah, said: “The two-state solution means to us that we have a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is the only way to achieve peace.”
26 sept 2018
|
|
In a letter distributed to Journalists at the United Nations in New York by the Director of the International Justice Program of the Human Rights Watch, Richard Dicker, the organization denounced Trump’s speech at the UN General Assembly, attacking the International Criminal Court.
“Trump’s threats today against the ICC are music for the ears of tyrants and war criminals, and his opposition to justice for the victims of genocide is yet another regression by the administration on human rights,” Dicker said. He added that the attack on international justice will only backfire, just as what happened during the Bush Administration of the United States. Trump’s statement came during the opening ceremony of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly, in New York, which was attended by leaders of more than 140 countries around the world. In his speech, Trump said that the United States does not recognize the International Criminal Court, and described it as a violation of the sovereignty of independent countries. He said that the ICC has “no jurisdiction, no legitimacy, and no authority, shielding human rights violations, while bashing American and its many friends.” |
25 sept 2018
Representatives of the Palestinian National Action Teams, yesterday, discussed the launch of a campaign to boycott US products in Palestine, and later expanding it to the Arab and Muslim world and the world, in response to the US Administration’s positions supporting the Israeli occupation.
The meeting pointed out the recent US decisions supporting Israel and its occupation, including declaring Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, the fight against the UNRWA and the cut of its funding, Washington’s attempts to cancel the Palestinian refugees’ right of return, and the closure of the PLO office.
The participants stressed that practical steps must be taken to respond to the practices and racism of the American administration, which showed the complete bias towards the occupation state, and violation of all international conventions.
For his part, head of the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee, Munther Amira, said that the United States has prepared the Palestinian people for such initiative when it declared its support for the racist occupation state, at the expense of legitimate national rights of Palestinians.
Amira told PNN that all of the popular factions, national action groups and the masses, are required to take a clear position against the United States, stressing that the Trump administration was the one to put itself in such position through its decisions.
Amira added that the campaign, which is being studied, should benefit from the experience of BDS movement by promoting the campaign on more than one level, pointing our its importance of implementing it on a Palestinian, Arab and Islamic level, in addition to the need to promote it internationally, in order to contribute to exposing racist practices taken by the Donald Trump administration, and to signal its danger to the international community.
Amira concluded by saying that the campaign will be launched in the near future through local events, and will then invite the friends of the Palestinian cause, at the international level, and the brothers of the Arab peoples, to be part of the campaign.
The meeting pointed out the recent US decisions supporting Israel and its occupation, including declaring Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, the fight against the UNRWA and the cut of its funding, Washington’s attempts to cancel the Palestinian refugees’ right of return, and the closure of the PLO office.
The participants stressed that practical steps must be taken to respond to the practices and racism of the American administration, which showed the complete bias towards the occupation state, and violation of all international conventions.
For his part, head of the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee, Munther Amira, said that the United States has prepared the Palestinian people for such initiative when it declared its support for the racist occupation state, at the expense of legitimate national rights of Palestinians.
Amira told PNN that all of the popular factions, national action groups and the masses, are required to take a clear position against the United States, stressing that the Trump administration was the one to put itself in such position through its decisions.
Amira added that the campaign, which is being studied, should benefit from the experience of BDS movement by promoting the campaign on more than one level, pointing our its importance of implementing it on a Palestinian, Arab and Islamic level, in addition to the need to promote it internationally, in order to contribute to exposing racist practices taken by the Donald Trump administration, and to signal its danger to the international community.
Amira concluded by saying that the campaign will be launched in the near future through local events, and will then invite the friends of the Palestinian cause, at the international level, and the brothers of the Arab peoples, to be part of the campaign.
20 sept 2018
Cellphone spyware sold by an Israeli security firm is suspected of being used against targets in dozens of countries including the United States, researchers warned on Tuesday, raising concerns and questions about topics ranging from eavesdropping to export control.
Known as “Pegasus,” researchers from the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab linked the malware to infections in 45 countries, including the U.S., Canada and the U.K., in addition to dozens of other nations, democratic and otherwise, Washington Times daily has reported.
Sold by NSO Group of Herzliya, Israel, Pegasus is capable of exfiltrating private data from infected cellphones, including passwords, text messages and live voice calls, and has previously been deployed against targets including Mexican journalists and a prominent United Arab Emirates human rights activists, among others.
Citizen Lab researchers scoured the internet for servers associated with Pegasus spyware during a two-year period ending August 2018, in turn discovering 1,091 IP addresses and 1,014 domain names, their the same source added.
Ultimately researchers detected a total of 45 countries “where Pegasus operators may be conducting surveillance operations,” including the U.S., Citizen Lab reported.
“The scope of this activity suggests that government-exclusive spyware is widely used to conduct activities that may be illegal in the countries where the targets are located, Citizen Lab reported. “While some of these infections may reflect usage of out-of-country VPN or satellite Internet service by targets, it is possible that several countries may be actively violating United States law by penetrating devices located within the U.S.”
NSO Group disputed the report in a statement, touting its products as “licensed only to legitimate government agencies for the sole purpose of investigating and preventing crime and terror.”
NSO Group could not immediately be reached for further comment.
At least six of the countries where Citizen Lab detected Pegasus operations have “previously been linked to abusive use of spyware to target civil society,” the report further stated.
Known as “Pegasus,” researchers from the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab linked the malware to infections in 45 countries, including the U.S., Canada and the U.K., in addition to dozens of other nations, democratic and otherwise, Washington Times daily has reported.
Sold by NSO Group of Herzliya, Israel, Pegasus is capable of exfiltrating private data from infected cellphones, including passwords, text messages and live voice calls, and has previously been deployed against targets including Mexican journalists and a prominent United Arab Emirates human rights activists, among others.
Citizen Lab researchers scoured the internet for servers associated with Pegasus spyware during a two-year period ending August 2018, in turn discovering 1,091 IP addresses and 1,014 domain names, their the same source added.
Ultimately researchers detected a total of 45 countries “where Pegasus operators may be conducting surveillance operations,” including the U.S., Citizen Lab reported.
“The scope of this activity suggests that government-exclusive spyware is widely used to conduct activities that may be illegal in the countries where the targets are located, Citizen Lab reported. “While some of these infections may reflect usage of out-of-country VPN or satellite Internet service by targets, it is possible that several countries may be actively violating United States law by penetrating devices located within the U.S.”
NSO Group disputed the report in a statement, touting its products as “licensed only to legitimate government agencies for the sole purpose of investigating and preventing crime and terror.”
NSO Group could not immediately be reached for further comment.
At least six of the countries where Citizen Lab detected Pegasus operations have “previously been linked to abusive use of spyware to target civil society,” the report further stated.
17 sept 2018
After shutting down the Palestinian Representative Office in Washington D.C., the Trump administration on Sunday ordered the Palestinian Envoy, Ambassador Dr. Husam Zomlot, and his family, out of the country, after cancelling their Visas and closing their US bank accounts.
Zomlot and his family, consisting of his wife and two children, age 5 and 7, were forced to leave the country immediately, without any chance to settle their affairs in Washington DC, where they have lived for years, and their Visas were valid until 2022.
The Palestinian envoy reportedly told the Lebanese Al-Mayadeen news outlet that “the American authorities cancelled my visa and my family’s visa and closed our bank accounts. We’ve been ordered to leave Washington immediately.”
Before the announcement that Zomlot would be forced to leave the country immediately, he had published this video on Twitter and Facebook saying that despite the U.S. Administration’s decision to close the Palestinian Representative Office, he hoped that the Palestinian and American people would remain committed toward building peace with each other over the long term:
Palestinian legislator, and member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, responded to the U.S. decision to force the Representative out of Washington by calling it blackmail and vindictive.
She told the Palestinian News Agency WAFA, “As if the announcement that the U.S. would close our office in Washington D.C. was not enough, this vindictive action by the Trump administration is spiteful. The U.S. has taken its attempts to pressure and blackmail the Palestinians to a new level.”
Analysts say that this appears to be another move by the US to pressure the Palestinian Authority into surrendering and accepting the so-called ‘deal of the century’ outlined by Jared Kushner and Trump, which would deny the Palestinian people their right to self-determination, deny the existence of the vast majority of Palestinians, especially the refugees, and force the Palestinians to live permanently in razor-wire surrounded reservations under the control of the Israeli military with no chance to have a state of their own.
The U.S. State Department issued a statement claiming that the Palestinian Representative Office in Washington D.C. had a waiver that expired in November 2017, and that they have allowed them to operate since that time with the objective of working on a ‘peace agreement’. video
The Trump administration refused to renew the waiver that allows the office to operate, thus rendering the status of 600,000 Palestinian-Americans in jeopardy – with no way to renew their Palestinian passports and other legal documents.
Zomlot and his family, consisting of his wife and two children, age 5 and 7, were forced to leave the country immediately, without any chance to settle their affairs in Washington DC, where they have lived for years, and their Visas were valid until 2022.
The Palestinian envoy reportedly told the Lebanese Al-Mayadeen news outlet that “the American authorities cancelled my visa and my family’s visa and closed our bank accounts. We’ve been ordered to leave Washington immediately.”
Before the announcement that Zomlot would be forced to leave the country immediately, he had published this video on Twitter and Facebook saying that despite the U.S. Administration’s decision to close the Palestinian Representative Office, he hoped that the Palestinian and American people would remain committed toward building peace with each other over the long term:
Palestinian legislator, and member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, responded to the U.S. decision to force the Representative out of Washington by calling it blackmail and vindictive.
She told the Palestinian News Agency WAFA, “As if the announcement that the U.S. would close our office in Washington D.C. was not enough, this vindictive action by the Trump administration is spiteful. The U.S. has taken its attempts to pressure and blackmail the Palestinians to a new level.”
Analysts say that this appears to be another move by the US to pressure the Palestinian Authority into surrendering and accepting the so-called ‘deal of the century’ outlined by Jared Kushner and Trump, which would deny the Palestinian people their right to self-determination, deny the existence of the vast majority of Palestinians, especially the refugees, and force the Palestinians to live permanently in razor-wire surrounded reservations under the control of the Israeli military with no chance to have a state of their own.
The U.S. State Department issued a statement claiming that the Palestinian Representative Office in Washington D.C. had a waiver that expired in November 2017, and that they have allowed them to operate since that time with the objective of working on a ‘peace agreement’. video
The Trump administration refused to renew the waiver that allows the office to operate, thus rendering the status of 600,000 Palestinian-Americans in jeopardy – with no way to renew their Palestinian passports and other legal documents.
16 sept 2018
The Palestinian Council in the United States of America said that the decision to close the PLO office in Washington will harm some 600,000 citizens of Palestinian origin.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Palestinian Council said that the closure is yet another American step toward attempts to liquidate the Palestinian cause, and not only affects the political situation, but rather affects serious humanitarian aspects related to consular services provided by the organization, including issues of inheritance, land sale and purchase, periodic agencies, etc, which will impact about 600,000 Americans of Palestinian origin, born and living in the United States.
The statement pointed out, according to the PNN, that the current American administration is closely allied with the Israeli far-right government, and continues with accelerated steps to liquidate and end the Palestinian cause, in order to serve the Israeli occupation state and support the existence of the Zionist entity as a regional power, after it has swallowed up the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967, including the occupied city of Jerusalem.
“This decision was not out of the context of the attempts to liquidate the Palestinian issue, but rather complemented it, through the previous attempts by the Trump administration to take the Jerusalem file off the table and recognize it as the capital of the Israeli occupation state, in addition to transferring the US embassy.”
The statement also referred to the efforts of the Trump administration to end the refugees issue by halting support to the UNRWA, and claiming that the number of refugees is less than 40,000 remaining, of those who were expelled from their homes in 1948, and the exclusion of refugee status for their children and grandchildren, totaling six million Palestinian refugees, from UN lists.
“The Trump administration seeks to legitimize the existence of the Israeli colonies in the Palestinian territories, refrains from using the two-state solution when talking about the future of the political process, and consolidating the separation of Gaza from the rest of the 1967 occupied territories, finding alternative negotiating channels.”
The Council said that even cancer patients in the occupied Palestinian territories did not survive American sanctions. The government of Trump announced that health assistance to Jerusalem hospitals, which are the only hospitals in the Palestinian territories that provide primary services for treating cancer patients, including those suffering from breast cancer, and about 5,000 children with different forms of cancer.
The council called on the people of the Arab and Islamic communities, and other advocates of justice, to stand with the struggle of the Palestinian community in the United States, to pressure the government of Donald Trump to back down from its decisions biased toward the occupying state, and which does not contribute to finding a just solution that achieves security, stability and peace in the Middle East.
The council appealed to all American forces and institutions that are supportive of justice, to support the Palestinian cause and the rights of the Palestinian Arab people to freedom, self-determination, independence and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, based on the territories occupied in 1967, by interacting and following up on the details of the campaign.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Palestinian Council said that the closure is yet another American step toward attempts to liquidate the Palestinian cause, and not only affects the political situation, but rather affects serious humanitarian aspects related to consular services provided by the organization, including issues of inheritance, land sale and purchase, periodic agencies, etc, which will impact about 600,000 Americans of Palestinian origin, born and living in the United States.
The statement pointed out, according to the PNN, that the current American administration is closely allied with the Israeli far-right government, and continues with accelerated steps to liquidate and end the Palestinian cause, in order to serve the Israeli occupation state and support the existence of the Zionist entity as a regional power, after it has swallowed up the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967, including the occupied city of Jerusalem.
“This decision was not out of the context of the attempts to liquidate the Palestinian issue, but rather complemented it, through the previous attempts by the Trump administration to take the Jerusalem file off the table and recognize it as the capital of the Israeli occupation state, in addition to transferring the US embassy.”
The statement also referred to the efforts of the Trump administration to end the refugees issue by halting support to the UNRWA, and claiming that the number of refugees is less than 40,000 remaining, of those who were expelled from their homes in 1948, and the exclusion of refugee status for their children and grandchildren, totaling six million Palestinian refugees, from UN lists.
“The Trump administration seeks to legitimize the existence of the Israeli colonies in the Palestinian territories, refrains from using the two-state solution when talking about the future of the political process, and consolidating the separation of Gaza from the rest of the 1967 occupied territories, finding alternative negotiating channels.”
The Council said that even cancer patients in the occupied Palestinian territories did not survive American sanctions. The government of Trump announced that health assistance to Jerusalem hospitals, which are the only hospitals in the Palestinian territories that provide primary services for treating cancer patients, including those suffering from breast cancer, and about 5,000 children with different forms of cancer.
The council called on the people of the Arab and Islamic communities, and other advocates of justice, to stand with the struggle of the Palestinian community in the United States, to pressure the government of Donald Trump to back down from its decisions biased toward the occupying state, and which does not contribute to finding a just solution that achieves security, stability and peace in the Middle East.
The council appealed to all American forces and institutions that are supportive of justice, to support the Palestinian cause and the rights of the Palestinian Arab people to freedom, self-determination, independence and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, based on the territories occupied in 1967, by interacting and following up on the details of the campaign.
Page : 25 - 24 - 23 - 22 - 21 - 20 - 19 - 18 - 17 - 16 - 15 - 14 - 13 - 12 - 11 - 10 - 9 - 8 - 7 - 6 - 5 - 4
